Cyclura rileyi cristata
| White Cay iguana | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Reptilia |
| Order: | Squamata |
| Suborder: | Iguania |
| Family: | Iguanidae |
| Genus: | Cyclura |
| Species: | C. rileyi |
| Subspecies: | C. r. cristata |
| Trinomial name | |
| Cyclura rileyi cristata (Schmidt, 1920) |
|
Cyclura rileyi cristata, commonly known as the White Cay iguana or Sandy Cay rock iguana, is a critically endangered subspecies of lizard of the genus Cyclura native to a single cay in the Bahamas: White Cay (also known as Sandy Cay) located in the Southern Exumas.
The White Cay iguana is an endangered subspecies of lizard of the genus Cyclura from the family Iguanidae. First identified by Leonhard Hess Stejneger in 1902, and given subspecific status in 1920 by American herpetologist Karl Patterson Schmidt, they are known commonly in the Bahamas as iguanas. Its generic name (Cyclura) is derived from the Ancient Greek cyclos (κύκλος) meaning "circular" and ourá (οὐρά) meaning "tail", after the thick-ringed tail characteristic of all Cyclura iguanas. Its specific name, rileyi, is a Latinized form of the name of American biologist, Joseph Harvey Riley. Its subspecific name cristata is Latin for "crest" referring to the animal's dorsal spines.
Measuring up to 280 mm (11 in) in length when full grown, the White Cay iguana is the smallest species of Cyclura. The back of adults is usually a gray-brown to orange-brown color. The dorsal scales, forelimbs, and portions of the head and face are highlighted in bright orange. Immature iguanas lack these bright colors, being either solid brown or grey with faint slightly darker stripes.
Males of this species, like other species within the Genus Cyclura are larger than females and have more prominent dorsal crests in addition to femoral pores on their thighs, which are used to release pheromones; females lack these pores and have shorter crests than the males making the animals sexually dimorphic.
...
Wikipedia